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The
energy in the room was palpable and electric from the very start. I lead a few
seminars each year, but this was different. I am not sure why. The wines were
dazzling. Surely that had a lot to do with it. But the wines alone are never
enough to sustain the energy in a room. There
has to be something more. And that something is usually the audience. I can
control which wines are served in a tasting, but not the participation of the
attendees. This was one of those days where everything came together. I can say
I had just as much fun tasting through these ten Champagnes as anyone in the
audience.

The
setting was Pebble Beach Food and Wine. I was joined on the panel by Laura
Maniec, MS, of Corkbuzz, Rajat Parr of Sandhi Wines and Sabato Sagaria, MS,
Wine Director of The Little Nell. For the occasion I chose ten of my favorite
grower Champagnes. Frankly, it was hard to narrow the choices to just ten, as
there were many wines I would have loved to include.

Egly-Ouriet’s NV Brut
Tradition often punches
above its weight. That is certainly the case here. Extended aging on the lees –
an Egly signature – along with a majority of Pinot Noir gives the Brut
Tradition much of its breadth, power and richness. The personality of Ambonnay
in all of its glory comes through loud and clear. This edition is based on
2007, with 50% reserve wines from 2006, 2005 and 2004. We are off to a great
start. Drinking window: 2013-2020. The NV
Brut Rosé Premier Cru from Aubry
remains one of the most utterly exquisite Champagnes I have tasted over the
last year. Based on the 2009 vintage, the Rosé Premier Cru is rich yet also weightless
on the palate. Mesmerizing pretty much sums it up. Drinking window: 2013-2017.

The
2007 Brut Premier Cru CuvéeGrand Cellier d’Or is classic Vilmart. Bright, perfumed and beautifully
delineated, the 2007 is wonderfully expressive and open. I don’t expect the
2007 will be especially long-lived, but it is absolutely gorgeous today. Drinking
window: 2013-2017. Francis Boulard’s 2007
Brut Nature Petraea MMVII provides a fascinating contrast to the Vilmart in
its warm oxidative notes and resonant texture. The Petraea is made in perpetual
solera style. The base vintage, here 2007, accounts for only 25% of the wine,
while the reserve wines, which go back to 1997, make up the majority of the
blend, which adds considerable complexity. Whereas the Vilmart is predominantly
Chardonnay, the Boulard is mostly Pinot Noir and Meunier. Drinking window: 2013-2017.

The
2005 Brut Cuvée Speciale Blanc de Blancs
Les Chetillons from Pierre Peters
is beautifully open and expressive, which is quite unusual in young Chetillons.
That is good news for those who want to catch a glimpse of one of Champagne’s
most exciting wines. This is about as good as it gets in what turned out to be
a very challenging vintage in Champagne. Drinking window: 2013-2020. Well,
perhaps making an exception for
Agrapart’s 2005 Extra Brut Blanc de Blancs Grand Cru Minéral. The trademark
Agrapart tension and energy is alive in the glass. Pure crystalline and
nuanced, the 2005 once again proved why it is one of the wines of the year.
More than a wine of the year, though, the Mineral really reflects the
extraordinary diligence and passion of Pascal Agrapart. What a great showing. Drinking
window: 2013-2025.

Jérôme Prévost’s Brut
Nature NV (2010) La Closerie– Les Beguines is one of the
raciest, most viscerally thrilling wines of the afternoon. Tightly wound and
powerful, the 2010 seems to sparkle with tension, length and finesse. The
flavors are quite focused, but over time the breadth of the Pinot Meunier
becomes more pronounced. The Beguines is another wine that is firing on all
cylinders. When you taste wine for a living, sometimes it’s easy to lose
perspective on just how rare some of the best wines are. Seeing the audience
totally turned on by a relatively unknown wine is immensely gratifying. Drinking
window: 2015-2025. The same thing happened with Cédric Bouchard’s NV (2010) Brut Nature Blanc de Noirs Val Vilaine.
Here, the fruit is so bright and focused, it’s hard to believe this is 100%
Pinot Noir. There is a purity, nuance and transparency in the Val Vilaine that
is utterly mesmerizing. I have had this wine many times since it was released
and it has never failed to leave a lasting impression. Drinking window: 2013-2018.

A
few months ago, I was having lunch at Le Bernardin, one of New York’s finest
and most elegant restaurants, and I was served a glass of Marie-Courtin Champagne. The wine was so vivid. It took me back to
my tasting at the winery the year before. I couldn’t help but notice how a wine
of such agrarian and simple – in the very best sense of the word – was so at
home in such an elegant restaurant. Pinot Noir takes on racy contours in the 2008 Extra Brut Efflorescence. Still
quite taut, the 2008 is all about focus. From time to time the breadth of the
Pinot comes through, but it is the wine’s sheer vibrancy that seems to speak
most. This is a fabulous showing. Drinking window: 2013-2018. Oliver Collin’s NV (2008) Extra Brut Blanc
de Blancs Les Perrières leaves the room speechless. What a wine! A warm,
toasty bouquet fleshes out into deep, expressive fruit in a big, large-scaled,
vinous Champagne of the highest level. All the elements are very much in place
in a wine that captures the best in small production, artisan Champagnes. Fermentation
and aging in French oak barrels give these wines distinctly Burgundian
overtones to match fruit from impeccably farmed vineyards. I think it is safe
to say that, on this day, the 2008 Les Perrières stole the show. Drinking
window: 2013-2018.